Supercontinuum Generation in Special Microstructured Fibers With Irregular and Regular Claddings Using Pumping Wavelengths in a Broad Range

We fabricated two types of special nonlinear, index-guiding air-silica microstructured fibers for supercontinuum (SC) generation. One fiber has an irregular structure of the holes in the cladding, and the other one has a regular structure. In both fibers, SC was generated by pumping the fibers with femtosecond pulses. The spectral features of the SC and the optimum pumping conditions were identified through mode dispersion analysis. It was found that SC in the fiber with irregular cladding can be generated by pumping the fiber with a broad wavelength range.